Results for "amazon smartphone"

The Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 is the second half of what Amazon hopes will be a one-two knockout punch to rival tablets, sliming down the last-gen Fire HD 8.9 and boosting speed and screen resolution in the process. As we found with the 7-inch Fire HDX, that can make for a compelling slate if you're already onboard with Amazon's ecosystem, but with a bigger price along with its bigger screen, does the 8.9-inch version hit the same sweet spot? Read on for the SlashGear review.

This week two former HTC executives have launched a smartphone brand called Kazam, complete with a whopping 5 models right out the gate. These smartphones are not aiming to present the sharpest displays, nor the most powerful processors - or the best cameras, for that matter. Instead they aim at a number of pressure points in the Android smartphone universe: replaceable batteries, microSD card slots, dual-SIM card ports, and top-notch tech support.

Audiovox has announced a new spherical remote shutter control designed specifically for smartphone cameras. The remote control is called the ShutterBall and works with several the most popular smartphones on the market. The goal of the ShutterBall is to make it easy for users to take self-portraits using their smartphone.

Smart devices that better understand context and might even be divorced from the traditional carrier deals are the future of mobile, Google Ventures' Rich Miner has predicted, teasing that the search giant's finance arm is almost ready to announce an investment that might help deliver some of the carrier-cutting intended with the initial Nexus project. Asked during the Mobilize conference today whether Google was considering rebooting its goal to push unsubsidized smartphones and relegate the networks to dumb pipes, Miner argued that the average consumer "still prefers a subsidized device" right now, but that Google Ventures is hoping to change that. "We've made an investment in one company that we're not going to make public right now" Miner revealed, "that is going to affect that space."

Amazon and HTC are partnering on the rumored "Kindle smartphone", a new report suggests, with the struggling phone manufacturer in talks around building as many as three handsets for the retail behemoth. Of the trio of unnamed devices, one is "at an advanced stage of development" - potential the device believed to be codenamed "Smith" - the FT [registration required] reports, though is still unlikely to launch until 2014 assuming Amazon sticks with its current roadmap.

Earlier today, word surfaced that Amazon has a device in the works called the Amazon Firetube, something said to be similar to the Google Chromecast. Following this, the Wall Street Journal is now reporting that Amazon has plans to launch a set top box in time for the upcoming holidays, something said to be codenamed "Cinnamon" with functionality akin to that of the Amazon Firetube.

There's a collection of Amazon products on the way nearing the end of the year here in 2013, it would seem, with the winner for Most Likely to Appear First going to a trademark filing by the name of Amazon Firetube. This name will quite likely go to a product that'll take cues from Google's Chromecast, allowing quick and easy display mirroring from the Amazon Kindle Fire series - or the possible upcoming smartphone series - for your big-screen TV. The trademark filing, found by an intrepid tipster speaking with 9to5Google's Seth Weintraub, has appeared in both the United States and in Canada all at once.

There's little doubt at this point that there's an interest in the public in what would essentially be an Amazon Android-based smartphone with a structure not unlike that of the Kindle Fire series of tablets. What we're seeing today is the newest in a long line of rumors in what would almost certainly be a Fire OS (Android-based) operating system running on an Amazon smartphone. Here the newest tip suggests that there will be two, not just one, smartphones working in the near future, the more high-end iteration to be code-named "Smith".

The wireless speaker system universe has seen another high-powered member born this week in the Samsung Shape M7 Wireless Audio Multiroom speaker system. This system works in collaboration with the Samsung Hub to connect a multi-room audio experience. The Samsung Shape model M7 works with the Samsung Hub for one-stop-shop connectivity or with Bluetooth and NFC for quick-touch control from your smartphone.

You could call Amazon's Kindle Fire the anti-Nexus. While the new Kindle Fire HDX may be based on Android, it's resolutely designed to cater for avid customers of Amazon's store, tailoring just about every part of the experience to streamline your shopping (whether digital or physical). Amazon may be selling the Kindle Fire HDX 7" practically at cost, but that doesn't mean the specifications underwhelm: one of the fastest processors paired with an incredible 7-inch 323 ppi display make for a pocketable powerhouse. Thrown in Mayday, Amazon's new rescue service for confused novices, and you've a tablet that wants to be a jack of all trades. Does it succeed? Read on for the full SlashGear review.